The LWVUS Board approved a new Education position at the March 2012 (March 25, 2012) Board meeting. The position is based on responses received from the 377 Leagues across the country who participated in the Education Study. Thanks to the many local and state Leagues and ILOs who held meetings, involved their communities and worked to reach consensus on this critical issue of importance to all Americans. Committee Chairs Peg Hill (TX) and Joanne Leavitt (CA) and their committee: Pat Aaron ( IL), Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins (CO), Patricia Libutti (NJ), Sanford Ostroy (MA), Jean Pierce (IL) and Janelle Rivers (SC) are to be commended for their excellent work and leadership.

LWVUS Position on the Federal Role in Public Education

The League of Women Voters believes that
the federal government shares with other levels of government the
responsibility to provide an equitable, quality public education for all
children pre-K through grade 12. A quality public education is essential for a
strong, viable, and sustainable democratic society and is a civil right.

The League believes that the role of the
federal government should include the following:

Provide leadership and vision to promote a
quality education for all children;

Provide broad common standards developed by
educational experts upon which states and local education agencies can build;

Provide a suggested curricular structure or
framework as a guide to state and local education agencies to develop their own
curricula;

Provide a national assessment that clearly
informs teachers, parents and students about how well individual students have
mastered criteria established at the national level;

Provide a national assessment that informs
districts how well their populations compare to other populations similar to
theirs; and

Provide a combination of competitive grants
and non-competitive funding to states and local school districts to achieve
equity among states and populations.

The League of Women Voters believes that an
equitable, quality public education is critical for students. While the League
recognizes that there are instances where the federal government’s involvement
is the only way to achieve universal change (desegregation, special needs
population, gender equity), we also recognize that primary responsibility for
public education resides with the states. In accordance with the League of
Women Voters’ position on Equal Rights, we continue to support equity in public
education for all through:

Broad guidelines for accountability,
leaving implementation to the state and local education agencies;

Adequate funding sources that support the
broad goals of national standards; and

Mechanisms for local and state funding with
adequate federal support for mandates that require less burdensome,
compliance-based reporting and regulations.

The League of Women Voters believes a basic
role of the federal government in funding education should be to achieve equity
among states and populations on the basis of identified needs. This should be
done with full understanding that equity does not mean equal, given that some
populations are more expensive to educate than others and some localities have
specific needs.

The League believes that the federal
government should be primarily responsible for funding any programs mandated by
the federal government on local education agencies. Although the League
recognizes equity in education depends on meeting basic human needs of children
and of their families, the costs associated with providing equitable access to
safe neighborhoods and secure housing do not belong in the education budget.
Major programs of federal funding for public education (i.e., Elementary and
Secondary Education Act) should be targeted toward children living in poverty
and/or children with special needs. The federal government has the
responsibility to monitor and support access to the following:

High quality teaching and learning,
supported by quality current learning materials and well maintained educational
facilities; and

The League of Women Voters believes that
the first five years of a child’s life are crucial in building the foundation
for educational attainment and greatly impact success or failure in later life.
Additionally, the League believes quality, developmentally appropriate and
voluntary early learning experiences should be available to all children, with
federally funded opportunities going first to children of poverty and/or with
special needs. The League believes that the federal government should support
the following:

Early childhood education programs that
include funding for parent education and involve child development, health,
nutrition and access to other supportive services such as mental health care
for all children and their families;

Research that documents quality early
childhood education programs; and

Research that demonstrates the importance
of linking state and local community partnerships with effective early
childhood education programs and services.

How LWV Education Position Developed

Research, Discussion, Consensus--Heart of LWV Positions

Almost everybody has an opinion about the federal role in education. Unfortunately, many people don't really know the facts about this issue. The history is long, and the laws and regulations are complex.

The Education Study scope included the following areas:

The role of the federal government in public education (pre-K through grade 12)

The history, Funding, and equity issues which are addressed under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act

The common core standards/assessments that are required for many federal grant programs.

The latter were written by national organizations, such as the National Governors' Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers— not Federal.

Before coming to consensus on these issues, League members researched and discussed, both important in the consensus process.

Links to Background Reading

To read the well-researched background information on the issues related to the role of the Federal government in U.S. public education, use the links below: